A to Z of MS National service frameworks (NSF)

National service frameworks

National service frameworks (NSFs) are long-term strategies for improving specific areas of care. They set measurable goals within set time frames. They are only applicable to the NHS in England.

National Service Frameworks:

• set national standards and identify key interventions for a defined service or care group
• put in place strategies to support implementation
• establish ways to ensure progress within an agreed time scale
• form one of a range of measures to raise quality and decrease variations in service

The first National Service Framework (for coronary heart disease) was published in April 1998.

National Service Framework for long-term conditions

The National Service Framework for long-term conditions, which includes multiple sclerosis, was published in March 2005. This is primarily aimed at services for adults with long-term neurological conditions, such as MS, Parkinson's disease and spinal cord injuries, although it is relevant to people with other long-term conditions.

The document contains eleven specific quality standards to be delivered over the next ten years with patient centred care underpinning all of the requirements.

The Department of Health had promised a mid-term review of the NSF in 2010, but the change in government meant this did not happen.

Neurological Commissioning Support, an organisation set up by neurological charities to support commissioners in implementing the NSF, has published 'Halfway through - are we halfway there?' a report that looked at the implementation of the quality requirements. Whilst the report found that at the current rate, the deadline for implementing the quality standards would not be met, it was optimistic that the targets are still achievable. However a report by the National Audit Office in December 2011 highlighted the lack of provision for monitoring implementation of the recommendations in the National Service Framework for long-term conditions.

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